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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2020 May 1.
Published in final edited form as: Biotechnol Adv. 2019 Feb 20;37(3):476–490. doi: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2019.02.013

Tab. 2.

Comparison of Molecular Diagnostic Technologies for Diagnosing Polymicrobial Infections

Technology Cost
 Detection Sensitivity Identification Accuracy Turnaround Time Multiplexing capability To Diagnose Polymicrobial Infections
Equipment Cost Assay Cost per Sample
Sequencing
Sanger Sequencing $$ $$$ Rely on PCR ★★★ ★★ ★
Targeted HT Sequencing $ $$ Rely on PCR ★★★ ★ ★★★
HT Whole Genome Sequencing $ $ Rely on PCR ★★★ ★ ★★★
Fingerprinting
Genetic Fingerprinting by High-Resolution Melting $$ $$$ Rely on PCR ★★ ★★★ ★
Genetic Fingerprinting by ESI Mass Spectrometry $ $$ Rely on PCR ★★ ★★ ★★
Protein Fingerprinting by MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry $ $$$ ★ ★★ ★ ★
Protein Fingerprinting by Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy $ $$$ ★^ ★★ ★ ★
Target-Specific Testing
Multiplexed qPCR $$ $$$ ★★★ ★★ ★★★ ★★
Digital PCR $$ $$ ★★★ ★★ ★★★ ★★★
Microarray $$ $$ Rely on PCR ★★ ★★ ★★★
PNA-FISH $$ $$$ ★ ★ ★ ★★
^

single cell being demonstrated, but not reliable

★

More stars suggest higher accuracy, higher sensitivity, shorter turnaround time and higher multiplexing capability